Dread Nation

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

SPOILERS AHEAD

Come from the monsters, stay for the pointed racial and political commentary. This book is less about zombies and more about race relations, both in our past and in our present. While it might seem like just an alternate history, what with the post-Civil War setting and zombie-fighting main character, Ireland interjects little references to our current culture here and there that make it obvious that she's not just talking about the past.

The Survivalists, with their firm agenda of promoting whites as the supreme beings to build a new society around and insistenance that black people have "their place" serving and protect them, use the political slogan "Make America Safe Again." In another jab at our current culture, Jane says, "You know the paper would never lie." There were lots of little moments that either made me laugh or think, and it was impossible to not think about ways the Zombie crisis could be a metaphor for our own world in present times.

The discussions Jane and Katherine have about passing as white vs living your truth were both eye-opening and heartbreaking. While on the surface it might seem be entirely beneficial to pass as white, in the end, would some sort of harm be inescapable? You live denying your true self, having to bite your tongue and with your silence approve the horrible things being said about your people, and the fear of being caught out in such a major lie would be neverending.

This book was not without its issues. The writing style felt a little clunky at times, and I disliked the chapter titles - they broke up the story unnecessarily and sometimes even spoiled the tension leading into a chapter. Also, I was surprised to see the one "Native" character, Daniel, play such a small role in the story as a whole. It felt like we were being led to a big character reveal of who he really was, but then he just left, and that apparently happened "off screen," or so we are told. Also, in preparing to write my own review, it has come to my attention that several Indigenous people have come out with concerns over how their cultures and people are both portrayed and then ignored in turn. Not knowing much about indigenous history, that wasn't something I initially saw in the text, but it is definitely concerning.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, and I'm hoping there will be a sequel of some sort in the next few years. I can only hope that Ireland continues her critique of our country and culture, while also listening to her own critics in order to strengthen her characters and portrayal of history, however alternate it might be.

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